When He Proposed
by NatalyaShae
Summary: Elizabeth and Henry McCord tell the Diplomatic story of how he proposed and why they walk around a park regardless of how hard it is to secure... "If you can't wait for someone to marry you, then you're obviously not in love with the person, your love lies with the idea of marriage. How can you not wait and then promise forever?"


Madam Secretary/one shot/The Proposal

Nicklaus James frowned as Fred Cole, the lead Diplomatic Security, failed to reason with the Secretary of State for the hundredth time. It was hard to cover the park with only their team and Fred was insistent NOT to lose another Secretary of State. Every day, the Secretary of State and her husband would walk around a pubic park and simply chat to each other, whether it was about work, their kids, or the idle chatter to one other, it never failed.

"Ma'am, if I may?" Nicklaus asks permission to speak freely. She looks at him and waves her go ahead, her gaze polite and curious.

"I was wondering, why the insistent need to walk around a park?" Nicklaus asks, hoping he wasn't crossing any lines. Fred gives him a hard look, warning him not to push. Despite the warning brush, everyone seemed interested.

"Ah, that is a good question." Elizabeth McCord says, glancing at her husband who was smiling knowingly.

"About 26 years ago, Henry proposed to me in a park by our college." Elizabeth informs.

"I didn't realize how long you two have been together, ma'am, congratulations. It must have been a very happy moment for you two" Nicklaus says, stunned that the couple before him. They seem madly in love with each other rather than a 'settled down' love. The Secretary laughs.

"On contraire. I thought he was breaking up with me" Elizabeth informs, frowning about the past. Henry pulls his wife tighter to him, a sympathetic look on his face.

"I-There was a misunderstanding and I perceived some things wrongly. So, the week before Henry proposed to me, we had been talking," Elizabeth notices Henry's raised eyebrow and promptly corrects herself, "Okay, I was yelling and crying and Henry just stood there and took it, better?" Elizabeth asks. Henry nods his head.

"I ended up…uh…" Elizabeth trails off, unsure how to tell the next part. It was rather unlike her and she was ashamed of her actions. For a moment, no one spoke, watching the Secretary of State become a loss for words.

"Ma'am?" Nicklaus asks cautiously. Elizabeth shot her husband a desperate look, causing him to step up and answer,

"She punched me. She hits pretty solidly too. I end up falling backwards, hitting my head yet again on a table. I became unconscious. From what I've heard, she panicked and screamed 'Oh my God, I've killed him'" Henry says, holding his hands up in surrender when Elizabeth shot him a glare.

"I did not scream that" She objects.

"Facts are facts, babe" Henry says, smirking. Elizabeth rolls her eyes.

"I _said_ not yelled, there's a difference. Besides, they rushed you to the hospital and you were fine" Elizabeth states, checking her nails.

Nicklaus couldn't believe what he was hearing. Looking around, he didn't seem to be the only one.

"Sounds to me like you're in the wrong department, the Department of Defense could use someone like that" Jones Rickman, another Diplomatic Security Agent says. Elizabeth shakes her head slightly.

"No," she drawls out, "I much more inclined to talk peace than to deal the finality of war." She says tiredly. There's a weight to that statement, but no one is dumb enough to comment. Dr. McCord rubs her arm, reminding her of where they were. Whether she thought of her CIA days or her recent visit to Iran gone bad, no one wanted to speculate.

"Anyway, after explaining everything, Henry took me to a park by our college for a walk in between classes. We'd always gone for walks when we could there so it was sentimental. It had been our anniversary since we'd been dating for about fours years." Elizabeth says, smiling fondly.

"What were the misconceptions about?" Nicklaus asks, wondering what caused the duo to fight in the first place.

"I was very nervous of proposing to Elizabeth so I had asked her dorm mate and best friend for help. We went out a few times, going over ideas, what to wear, presents, flowers, the whole shebang. One night, I was with her best friend in their dorm, alone, with the door closed, and Elizabeth comes back from her classes looking like death warmed over, and-"

"The only thing I could think was, 'Oh my God, he's cheating on me'" Elizabeth interrupts. By now they had come to a stop an were simply listening as the Secretary and her husband shared their story.

"By then, after dating for nearing four years, going through everything we've gone through at the time, I was madly in love with him," Elizabeth says staring at her husband, who was smiling fondly back at her, "I've noticed my then best friend, Ashley, and him give each other these secret glances and smiles, sometimes laughs, and I didn't think too much of it. So when I came back to my dorm and saw them together, I just kind of…you know…"

"Went nuclear" Henry supplied helpfully. Elizabeth grimaces.

"Yeah, nuclear." She agrees. Nicklaus was leaning forward, eager to hear what happened.

"Unfortunately, when I get mad, I cry and yell at the same time. It's not pretty" Elizabeth admits motioning to her face with one hand while scrunching up her face to emphasize her point.

"I think you look properly intimidating." Henry says. Elizabeth gives him an endearing look with an amused smile.

"I ended up charging out of the dorm and leaving. I drove from UVA to my Farmhouse just to spend the night with my horse, Buttercup." Elizabeth sighs in memory.

"It was reaching in the 20's that night. When I found her, she was shivering and on the verge of having hypothermia." Henry adds.

"I woke up with three blankets on top of me, a mug of hot chocolate being handed to me and in my own bed." Elizabeth says before she laughs and continues, "I was so surprised that Henry carried me from the Farmhouse into my own house that I forgot that I was mad at him."

"Should have seen it when she remembered she was mad at me" Henry adds.

"Obviously you guys made up, though" Nicklaus says as The Secretary and Dr. McCord stared at each other with small grins.

"Yes, we made up, over pancakes and ice cream in fact." Elizabeth says, " Henry had cooked them before I woke up. They're my favorite…" Elizabeth says, breaking off at the end. No one but her family knew why Pancakes with ice cream were her favorite, Nicklaus thought, and it seems that there was more too it.

"After I explains some thing to her, we went out for a horse ride and just generally spent a good day out at the farmhouse. The next morning we drove back to UVA, went to our classes, and then-"

"And then Henry stole me away and brought me to the park near our college. It was so beautiful. It was just going into Fall, so everything was still turning colors! Henry set up a picnic with a huge blanket. We'd been talking about how we wanted to make a difference in the world. Henry said he was going to join the Marine Corp and I said I was going to go back to school for Political Science." Elizabeth gushes, reliving the moment with a smile. No one couldn't not smile at how happy their Secretary seemed to have been. Henry was smiling with a bit of pride, knowing that he made her happy that day, but not as happy as him.

"I'd been kissing her when I asked her to marry me. 'I have seen the days without you, and I beseech you a sight in which the days become nights. I have fallen so deeply in love with you, that your pain is our pain, and my love, is our love.' And then I did the whole, will you marry me' bit." Henry informs. The Secretary and Dr. McCord stared at each other; like they both had a fight recently and were just now reconnecting.

"That's setting a standard that doesn't seem fair for the rest of us, sir" Nicklaus grumbles goodheartedly.

"Yes well, who knew planning a proposal would lead to getting knocked out and a hospital visit." Henry says laughing. Elizabeth rolled her eyes at her husband. Grabbing his hand, Elizabeth started to walk again. Henry stood closer to her than before.

"I love you, babe" He says softly to her.

"You kind of have too, it's in the contract" Elizabeth retorts, making chuckle. Nicklaus and the rest of the Diplomatic Security back off a little more than usual, allowing the McCord's to have a bit more privacy, or the illusion thereof.

"Whatever happens, we're together" Henry says to his wife when there walk came to an end. Elizabeth buried herself into her husband, soaking up his strength and warmth.

"I love you" she whispers into his chest. Henry held her tighter.

"I love you too, babe" He replies, his emotions blatant in his voice.

"MADAM SECRETARY!" A voice not to far yells for her attention. Groaning at the voice of one of her staff, she backs away from Henry.

"Duty calls" She grumbles, sharing a kiss with her husband.

"Give 'em hell" he retorts.

"That's the Defense's job" she reasons, making Henry laugh as he now worked for said department.

… THE END …

"Love isn't about what it gives, it's about what it takes"

"If you have to ask if you should marry someone, then you aren't ready to marry them."

"If you can't wait for someone to marry you, then you're obviously not in love with the person, your love lies with the idea of marriage. How can you not wait and then promise forever?"


End file.
